Academic Word Families — Learn One, Own Four
Academic English recycles the same roots in different costumes. Learn a family and one hour of study buys you a verb, a noun, an adjective and an adverb — each ready for a different section of the test.
The model family: analyze
| Form | Example in academic English |
|---|---|
| analyze (verb) | Researchers analyze the results for patterns. (Reading/Listening verbs of research) |
| analysis (noun) | The analysis suggests a clear trend. (The form essays and discussions need) |
| analytical (adjective) | An analytical approach to the problem. (Describing methods and thinking) |
| analytically (adverb) | She approached the data analytically. (Rare but recognized instantly in reading) |
How to study families
- Always learn the NOUN form — academic writing nominalizes constantly ('the analysis of…' not 'when we analyze…').
- Mark the stress shift: PHOtograph → phoTOgraphy; ANalyze → aNALysis. Listening hides words behind stress changes.
- For each family, write ONE sentence per form about the same topic — four sentences, one idea, four costumes.
- In the sets below and on every set page, the family line shows the forms; the quiz below checks the noun forms, the highest-value ones.
Families in this system (first 14)
| Base word | Family |
|---|---|
| analyze | analysis (n) · analytical (adj) · analytically (adv) · analyst (n) |
| assess | assessment (n) · assessor (n) |
| contribute | contribution (n) · contributor (n) · contributory (adj) |
| demonstrate | demonstration (n) · demonstrative (adj) |
| indicate | indication (n) · indicator (n) · indicative (adj) |
| evidence | evident (adj) · evidently (adv) |
| approach | approach (v) |
| factor | factor (v) |
| issue | issue (v) |
| concept | conceptual (adj) · conceptualize (v) |
| significant | significance (n) · significantly (adv) |
| specific | specifically (adv) · specify (v) · specification (n) |
| previous | previously (adv) |
| available | availability (n) · availably (adv, rare) |